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Water Quality

River Basin Management Plan for Ireland

Under the EU Water Framework Directive, Ireland is required to produce a river basin management plan every 6 years to protect and improve water quality. The next plan will cover the period 2022-2027. This vital plan will set out the environmental objectives for water quality to be achieved by 2027 and identify the measures that will protect and restore our rivers, lakes, estuaries and coastal waters, to ensure those objectives are achieved. The plan will also identify the bodies responsible for implementing these measure.

Below is an interactive leaflet on the draft River Basin Management Plan with some good information on water quality in our rivers lakes, wetlands, canals and groundwaters.

Draft River Basin Management Plan for Ireland.pdf (size 2 MB)


Local Authority Waters Programme

Water Framework Directive – Local Authority Water Programme (lawaters.ie)


Guide to the Water Framework Directive

Guide to the Water Framework Directive – Catchments.ie – Catchments.ie